Malaysia will go into a crucial clash with South Korea in the 5-8th classification match for a creditable finish at the 2024 FIH Nations Cup in Gniezno, Poland.
National team head coach Sarjit Singh said the Koreans are known for their exceptional skills and unwavering resilience as shown in the Sultan Azlan Shah Cup recently.
He expects another round of ballistic performances from the Speedy Tigers and the Koreans tomorrow (7.0pm Malaysian time). The Austrians and Canadians will face off in the second 5-8th classification match.
“Overall, I am happy with the performance of the players here. They have been playing well and are very committed. Leaving the results aside, every match is an opportunity for players to learn and improve,” said Sarjit.
“We will only get better and better in the long run. It is a learning process for the team and several players who earned their first international caps. Our preparations are for the Asian Games in 2026,” he added.
“The team is experiencing all kinds of ups and downs in a match and it is good that these things are happening now. We are working towards overcoming these situations.”
The world No 13-ranked Speedy Tigers drew 4-4 against Pakistan in their opening Pool B match, lost 1-3 to World No 9 France, and beat the 21-ranked Canadians for a 4-2 victory.
At the conclusion of Pool A matches on Thursday, South Africa defeated South Korea 2-0 and Austria edged Poland 2-1. Olympic-bound New Zealand tops the pool on 12 points, followed by the South Africans (6 points), Austrians (6 points), Koreans (3) and hosts Poland (3).
The Black Sticks will play Pakistan, and South Africa takes on Paris-Olympics hosts France in the semi-finals tomorrow.
The French, who held a 4-1 lead in a Pool B match against the Green Shirts, struggled to maintain their dominance in the third and fourth quarters before pulling off a 6-5 victory via Victor Charlet’s penalty corner conversion in the 59th minute of regulation time.
Sarjit is also unhappy at the players getting four yellow and four green cards against the Canadians. For all their efforts, the Malaysians couldn’t keep a cool head and a disciplinary issue almost cost them.
Defender Muhammad Faris Harizan got a 10-minute yellow card towards the end of the third quarter and Shello Silverius followed in the 52nd minute. In the end, the Speedy Tigers came up with the goods to see the game through with a win.
“In the last two quarters they lost focus and got booked. We basically played the last 33 minutes with a man short, and at one stage of the match, we were down to nine men. I cannot understand how this happened,” he said, adding that this situation must not be repeated in the future.
As far as hockey fans are concerned, a Malaysia-South Korea encounter will be another thrilling and yo-yo affair. In the first edition of the 2022 Nations Cup held in Potchefstroom, South Africa, the Koreans won 4-0 in the playoffs for the bronze medal.
However, the Speedy Tigers exhibited a commanding performance in the recent 30th edition of the Sultan Azlan Shah Cup to triumph 1-0, courtesy of forward Akhimullah Anuar Esook’s seventh minute field goal.
